The €6 million swing between a grand slam and a third-place finish in the Six Nations could have a significant impact on the IRFU, according to RTÉ's Against the Head panel.
Ireland's sobering defeat to France on Saturday extinguished hopes of a grand slam, and while there was a sense of deflation for players and supporters alike, the financial reality is even more stark
A clean sweep in this year's championship would have resulted in prize money just shy of €9m (€8.98m) for Irish rugby.
Simon Easterby’s side travel to Rome to round off their campaign and could finish the day as unlikely champions – should Les Bleus fail to see off Scotland in Paris – or as low as third.
Players and management will be concerning themselves with on matters on the pitch, yet the final table will significantly impact the IRFU’s coffers and their future spending.
A championship victory – with the grand slam bonus now off the table - would be worth €7.78m, while the runner-up will claim €4.19m.
With third place worth €2.99m, it means Ireland’s prize-money could potentially drop by €6m in the space of a week.
The IRFU, while never budgeting for a grand slam campaign, have become used to top-two finishes – runners-up and back-to-back champions in the last three seasons – and are likely to have budgeted accordingly.
"There are rumours that there are going to be cutbacks across the professional game in Ireland," Bernard Jackman said on RTÉ's Against the Head
"I'd imagine the projected figures were based around finishing first or second as we have been very good at that.
"The jeopardy for not finishing second, which it looks like we are fighting for the moment more than winning, is massive in terms of money going into the game."
Fellow pundit Donal Lenihan added that with 78% of IRFU’s income derived from the international game, the impact of a drop-off in success would trickle down quickly.
"Given where the provinces are at the minute, crowds are down at the URC, Champions Cup television rights, you’re not generating the money that you were a number of years ago," he said.
Former Ireland international Darren Cave told viewers: "Everyone has their hand out, and rightly so.
"All area of the game will be looking for more money. Everyone wants more, but I don’t know if there is more to give."
Watch Italy v Ireland in the Six Nations on Saturday from 1.15pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player. Follow a live blog on rte.ie/sport and the RTÉ News app. Listen to live commentary with Saturday Sport on RTÉ Radio 1
